Re: Part 73b - In the green
Daley nods his understanding of Aaron's orders, "You can count on me, Sir." And then he turns to leave, gets about ten yards, steps around a tree, and seems to disappear into the undergrowth. Leaving Aaron and Luke alone, in a part of Arden which is unknown to both of them. Still, at least the tracks of the mysterious killers are clear enough.
The pair set out along the trail, cautiously checking for signs of an ambush, and Luke fills in Aaron on some of the details he may have missed in his travels - how Cyan was captured by the Archons, and how part of her had been taken, a tiny fragment of her persona, nurtured and reproduced by Harbonah's minions, and placed into the minds of some new creation. A creation designed to hunt for Cyan, Berd, and any of the other questers they could find.
A creation which, so far, none of its quarry have seen... To the best of their knowledge.
Andafter a couple of hours they come to a ravine in the forest, perhaps fifty yards wide, and with a fast flowing river crashing over the rocks in its depths. There is a bridge, a structure of split logs and twisted rope, swaying in the wind which blows up from the abyss.
And on the far side, a thing stands guard. A creature, bestial in appearance, but shaped like a woman, with a hide of scales and horns, and matted hair. She holds a sword which is close to six feet long, casually, in one hand, and watches the bridge with one eye, the other a mess of red scar tissue...